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Nigeria Premier League
The Nigeria Premier League is the highest level of domestic Nigerian football. It is fed into by the two First Division groups: the Nigerian Division 1-A and Nigerian Division 1-B. It is organized by the Nigeria Football Association. The NPL Chairman is Davidson Owunmi. Enyimba F.C. are the current champions. History The league was founded in 1972 with six teams. On Saturday 12 May 1990 at the Onikan Stadium Lagos, the league was rechristened the "Professional League" with a goal to modernize the game and make clubs self-sufficient. Decrees 10 and 11 which codified the introduction of professional football in Nigeria stipulated that professional clubs should be run as limited liability companies each governed by a regularly constituted board of directors and required to hold annual general meetings, present independently audited accounts, cultivate youth/feeder teams and own their own stadium within five years of registration with the Pro League Department. To assist Pro League clubs in the timely achievement of these stated goals, all 56 professional club-sides that constituted the inaugural Pro League First and Second Division were granted a five-year tax moratorium on all income starting from 1990. From 1999-2007, there was an end of season Championship called the "Super Four". The top four teams would play a round robin mini-league at a neutral site to determine the league champion. The Super Four is now a pre-season tournament featuring the top four teams of the prior year. After the 2006 competition, the league changed its calendar to more closely match the common European regular season structure (starting around August and ending around May). The Premier League is managed by the Nigeria Professional League Board. 2010–11 season *Bukola Babes (Ilorin) *Crown FC (Ogbomosho) *Dolphins (Port Harcourt) *Enugu Rangers (Enugu) *Enyimba (Aba) *Gombe United (Gombe) *Heartland (Owerri) *JUTH FC (Jos) *Kaduna United (Kaduna) *Kano Pillars (Kano) *Kwara United (Ilorin) *Lobi Stars (Makurdi) *Niger Tornadoes (Minna) *Ocean Boys (Brass) *Plateau United (Jos) *Sharks (Port Harcourt) *Shooting Stars (Ibadan) *Sunshine Stars (Akure) *Warri Wolves (Warri) *Zamfara United (Gusau) ;The following teams were relegated to the National League at the end of the 2009-10 season: *Bayelsa United (Yenegoa) *Gateway (Abeokuta) *Ranchers Bees (Kaduna) *Wikki Tourists (Bauchi) Winners *1972 : Mighty Jets (Jos) *1973 : Bendel Insurance FC (Benin City) *1974 : Rangers International (Enugu) *1975 : Rangers International (Enugu) *1976 : Shooting Stars FC (Ibadan) *1977 : Rangers International (Enugu) *1978 : Racca Rovers (Kano) *1979 : Bendel Insurance FC (Benin City) *1980 : Shooting Stars FC (Ibadan) *1981 : Rangers International (Enugu) *1982 : Rangers International (Enugu) *1983 : Shooting Stars FC (Ibadan) *1984 : Rangers International (Enugu) *1985 : New Nigeria Bank (Benin City) *1986 : Leventis United (Ibadan) *1987 : Iwuanyanwu Nationale (Owerri) *1988 : Iwuanyanwu Nationale (Owerri) *1989 : Iwuanyanwu Nationale (Owerri) *1990 : Iwuanyanwu Nationale (Owerri) *1991 : Julius Berger (Lagos) *1992 : Stationery Stores (Lagos) *1993 : Iwuanyanwu Nationale (Owerri) *1994 : BCC Lions (Gboko) *1995 : Shooting Stars FC (Ibadan) *1996 : Udoji United (Awka) *1997 : Eagle Cement (Port Harcourt) *1998 : Shooting Stars FC (Ibadan) *1999 : Lobi Stars (Makurdi) *2000 : Julius Berger (Lagos) *2001 : Enyimba (Aba) *2002 : Enyimba (Aba) *2003 : Enyimba (Aba) *2004 : Dolphins FC (Port Harcourt) *2005 : Enyimba (Aba) *2006 : Ocean Boys FC (Brass) *2007 : Enyimba (Aba) *2008 : Kano Pillars F.C. (Kano) *2009 : Bayelsa United (Yenegoa) *2010 : Enyimba (Aba) Topscorers http://www.supersport.com/football/nigeria50/news/110315/The_Nigerian_leagues_top_scorers_jinx References External links *Official Site *RSSSF competition history Category:Leagues